What we Have is Not Always Treasured
by Dragon and Sword Master
Summary: Set in-between The Stray and Black and White: A Faunus who hid forever finally felt she could trust her partner, her lover and her team with the truth. However, some things are best left hidden. Now...is it to late for a certain cat to get who she loves back? Or is she lost forever... Checkmate/Monochrome.
1. Chapter 1

Dragon and Sword Master: Alright, this little thing was bugging me for the last couple of days while I was writing for a new RWBY story and wouldn't let me go. Heard this song on the radio one day going into work, and I instantly thought of Blake. Debated between a Checkmate and Bumblebee pairing for a while, but the song is more appropriate for a game of chess instead of an insect me thinks.

* * *

What we Have is Not Always Treasured

"How…how could you hide something like that from me?! From us?" Weiss asked angrily as she stared at her girlfriend with rage filling her light-blue eyes. Blake Belladonna, the person who had been able to warm her way into Weiss's heart, had her bow down for the first time in forever…and the two black cat ears on top of her head showed that she was a Faunus. The same type of creature that she was conditioned to hate with all her being, especially with the White Fang who were constantly attacking their supplies.

"Weiss, I can—" Blake started to say before having the business end of Weiss's Multi-Action Dust Rapier (MADR) otherwise simply known as Myrtenaster, pointing right in her face.

"No. Stay away from me you filthy faunus," Weiss said angrily before sheathing Myrtenaster and storming out the door, not seeing Blake look down in sadness, nor her ears droop as well. The Schnee heiress didn't even want to hear Blake's response as to why she hid her Faunus heritage for so long.

"Weiss, wait!" Ruby started to say, getting up and trying to head off towards her partner.

"Sis, let her go, Ice Princess will just lash out at you if you do," Yang stated as she looked at her partner. "And while I do hate saying that I agree with your girlfriend Blake…I'm sure you had a good reason for hiding it. Would you mind telling us?" the blonde bombshell asked before Blake sighed lightly. _'This wouldn't be happening if I didn't meet Sun Wukong...'_ she thought before composing herself, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"That reason right there…is why I hid my status as a faunus, not just from her but from the general population. I should have told her sooner…I should have told all of you," she said before muttering the last part. "It's not wrong…for me to want to get past this…with Weiss?" she asked after a few moments. Yang got up from the bed that she was sitting on and moved over to hug the girl.

"It's not wrong Blake-y, but do expect a bit of a cold shoulder from her…and for once, that pun was not intended," Yang said, causing both Ruby and Blake to sigh lightly at the scene before getting up to console the kitten, mentally laughing as Blake started purring softly as the warm and safe Aura fell around her.

"Yaaang," Ruby said with a light sigh as she just shook her head. This was her sister she was talking to, someone that wouldn't change who she was no matter what happened. Seeing that Yang had Blake covered, Ruby softly and silently left the room, intent on looking for her partner, despite what her sister said.

 _We all want what we ain't got,_ _  
_ _Our favorite doors are always locked._ _  
_ _On a higher hill with a taller top,_ _  
_ _We all want what we ain't got._

"Weiss, wait!" Ruby shouted as she saw the white hair of her partner heading towards the library. She could have sped past her in an attempt to bar her path, but the leader of Team RWBY had a feeling that would only make the heiress angrier. Seeing her partner stop, Ruby put on the brakes and came to a leisurely walk alongside her partner.

"Ruby…leave"

"Nope, not gonna happen!" Ruby replied, popping the 'p' in her response. "You really hurt Blake back there yo-"

"I don't care," Weiss responded as she continued to the training area, somewhere she could be away from her partner. Either that or the library, whichever place would stop Ruby from following her. Of course, this was Ruby Rose…one of the few people who wouldn't stop until the problem was resolved.

"How can you not care? So she has a few extra limbs, that doesn't stop her from being Blake Belladonna, right?" Ruby asked, causing Weiss to sigh lightly.

"Ruby, you enjoy your cookies, right?"

"Yeah, but how—"

"Now think if you've had chocolate chip cookies all your life. And they taste a certain way. Now you find out the favorite company that have made these cookies for years stopped making them. How would you feel?"

"I'd be annoyed for a little bit, but Weiss, I like all types of sweets. It's why I like strawberries as well as cookies! I don't know how your scenario is the same as attacking Blake," Ruby said, confused as to what her partner was getting at.

"Y-you, gah! Just stay away from me Ruby Rose! I don't want you or anyone else from Team RWBY in my sight right now!" she yelled at the girl in red, immediately wishing she could take that back. She didn't mean not wanting to see anyone, she just didn't want to see her girlfriend right now…maybe her ex-girlfriend now; it was one of the few things she was going to think about…as soon as she got some alone time. "Wait, Ruby…I" she started to say, only to see a small amount of rose petals where her partner was just a few seconds before. Annoyed at Blake, at herself, at Blake being a Faunus, annoyed at everything really, she opened up her scroll before activating the map feature and looking for the closest training facility.

Finding it, she placed it back in her pocket, "Guess I got the peace and quiet I wanted…" she muttered as she headed towards it, not realizing that it was already occupied by someone. Heading inside, she saw the crimson hair of Pyrrha Nikos going through some katas.

"Weiss?" the Spartan-themed girl asked, curious as to why she was there.

 _We ain't happy where we are,_ _  
_ _There's greener grass in the neighbor's yard._ _  
_ _A bigger house and a faster car,_ _  
_ _We ain't happy where we are._

Weiss looked down at her scroll once it beeped, indicating that not only was she low on Aura at the moment, but also that she had a text message coming in. Seeing that it was from the blonde brute of the team, Weiss mentally winced, knowing that this wasn't going to be pretty. Sighing lightly, she opened the message, already expecting the worst and figured that it would be better to just bite the bullet and get it over with.

"Weiss…after seeing what you did to my sister and to your girlfriend, at the moment, don't come back to the dorm. You won't be welcomed here if you get here before we lock the door, and I've programmed the door not to recognize your scroll if you get here after. Princess, you screwed up. Big time. Until your attitude changes, you've been banned from the dorm. When you think you're ready…text me. Not your girlfriend, or ex-girlfriend, not my sister, me." After that, Weiss frowned lightly.

"Guess I deserved that…" she muttered to herself with a light sigh.

"Deserve what?" Pyrrha asked after toweling herself off. Seeing the heiress frown lightly, she headed over to Weiss, interested in what caused her to do that. Once within hearing distance, she heard Weiss mutter that she deserved that and couldn't help the question coming out. "Sorry, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"Well…it's a little personal. I found out something about Blake that I wasn't expecting and overreacted. Yang texted me saying that it would be better if I find a different place of lodging for a few nights…" Weiss admitted, a little embarrassed that she was telling her idol all of this.

"I'll have to talk to Jaune, but I don't think he'll mind if you bunk with us for a little while. Come on, let's go back to the dorm. I'm sure I can talk to Yang for you if you want?" she asked, offering her services as a mediator, even if she knew that her leader's crush would be sharing the room with them.

"I'd…I'd like that," the heiress admitted softly, not use to having to rely on anyone else. Though she didn't realize that seeing Blake would reignite the feelings that she tried to force away back into the forefront. Though seeing Yang helping her also made Weiss wonder…did Blake already move on? She thought…which caused a spike of pain to go through her heart.

 _Why…does thinking that…hurt so much?_ She asked herself, especially when she saw Yang so close to Blake.

 _All I want is what I had,_ _  
_ _I'd trade it all just to get her back._ _  
_ _She's moving on, but I guess I'm not,_ _  
_ _Yeah, we all want what we ain't got._

 _A Few Days Later_

Weiss had calmed down enough over the last couple of days, enough where she thought that she could live with Blake being a faunus. She wasn't sure if they could get back together, and honestly, she wasn't sure if she deserved the, now-discovered, cat girl's heart after the way she overreacted that day. Though it was hard to see Blake and Yang so together now…maybe it was for the best. However, it was hard to even see her partner look at her with a look of disappointment…at least in the beginning. Then she turned back to her usual self.

 _'That Dolt'_ Weiss thought to herself lightly before shaking her head and heading into class and sat near her teammates, but didn't say anything to them…not yet anyways. After class though, she would have to talk to Yang. _'That's going to be fun'_ she thought sarcastically before Professor Port walked into the classroom and started his lecture.

 _After Class_

"Yang can I talk to you? Alone?" Weiss asked, hating how weak she sounded by asking the blonde brute that particular question, but she wanted to patch things up between herself and her team. That, and she wanted to make sure Yang was treating Blake okay. Even if the cat faunus never thought of her in that way again, at least she could look out for Blake all the same.

"Sure. Rubes, Blake-y, I'll meet back up with you later?" She asked, getting a nod from the both of them. After Team Ladybug had left, Yang turned towards Weiss with her hands on her hips. "Follow me," was all that she said before turning around and leaving the classroom, Weiss quickly following after the brute that was her partner's older sister. A few minutes later, Weiss stood out in front of the empty classroom, psyching herself up before entering.

Weiss had thought about this for a while and knew she was going to have to swallow her pride. It was going to hurt, to have to do such a thing, but some sacrifices had to be made, especially now. Turning to lock the door behind her and start the conversation, she knew this was going to be hard…especially for her.

"Weiss Schnee, are you stalling?" Yang asked, getting Weiss to scowl lightly at the door.

"Listen here you brute…sorry, I didn't mean that. Well…actually, I kinda…sorta did? Anyways, that isn't important. This is hard for me…I've never actually apologized for anything to tell you the truth," she started to say after turning to meet Yang face to face. However, said blonde interrupted her with a 'There's a first time for everything,' causing the heiress to give her a glare that promised death. "Will you let me finish?! I shouldn't have let my prejudice against faunus affect my relationship with Blake, it was…it was just quite a shock, you know? And when the only faunus you've dealt with your whole life is the White Fang, well…" at that, she dropped the sentence, not needing to complete the underlying message.

"Okay, so that explains why you lashed out at Blake-y, though you still have to apologize to her. Now then, why did you lash out at my sister? Rubes was only trying to help you know." Weiss sighed at that, "I know…and I really shouldn't have lashed out at the dolt like that. It's just…with everything that happened, I just needed some time to think things through. And there was Ruby trying to be helpful when she was only making it worse. It's just…"

"Just that she can be a little overbearing?" Yang asked, getting a nod from the white-haired heiress and responded with a soft sigh. "Sometimes she doesn't think things through all the way, but she does mean well. Now then…do you have anything else you want to talk about before coming back to the dorm?"

"Well there is one thing…"

 _We all wish it didn't hurt,_ _  
_ _When you try your best and it doesn't work._ _  
_ _And goodbye's such a painful word,_ _  
_ _We all wish it didn't hurt._

Yang stopped laughing, finally getting it under control. "You…really thought…"

"Shut up, it's not funny!" Weiss said with a light blush. "What do you expect me to think after all that happened between the four of us and between me and Blake?" She asked as she tried getting herself back together and glaring at the blonde.

"It actually is Queenie," she said with a smirk before dodging a shot of ice. "Hey, if anyone here, it's you that needs to 'cool' down," she said dodging another blast of frigid air with a smirk on her face. "Hey now…this is a classroom…how are we going to explain the damages?" she asked, finally getting Weiss to stop firing ice-powered Dust. "Now was that so bad Queenie?" She asked, causing Weiss to growl before smirking.

"You know…I know where you sleep."

"Yeah? So do I. Besides, you couldn't prank me to save your life."

"True, you do. But your semblance isn't glyphs. Glyphs can do a lot of things…" Weiss said with an uncharacteristic smirk on her face. And since they were done with the conversation, she now needed to talk to Pyrrha and thank Team JNPR for letting her bunk there for the last couple of nights, leaving Yang to her thoughts…and her jaw unhinged.

"Wait…did she just prank me?" She asked after she got her thoughts together, but by then, Weiss was long gone. Shaking her head lightly at the unheard threat, Yang Xiao Long made her way back towards the dorm room that she shared with her teammates. Heading inside, she saw Ruby look up from the textbook that she was reading, and Blake…nowhere in sight. "Hey Rubes, where'd the kitty go?" she asked, curiously.

"Blake said she was going down to the docks, to see if any other competition came in. Honestly though…I think she's trying to avoid Weiss," Ruby replied after turning around and looking at her sister. "I mean with the whole reaction and then giving her dirty looks the past couple of days, I honestly don't blame her," she said with a soft sigh.

"Well, I do have some good news about that. Weiss wants to apologize to the both of you. And no, hell hasn't frozen over yet." Yang said with a grin, causing Ruby to giggle before shaking her head.

"And with the amount of puns you use, even if it did freeze, you'll warm it up when you get there."

"Hey!" Yang replied before the sisters started laughing. And this was the scene that Weiss had walked into, carrying a small suitcase with her glyph carrying another two behind her. Staring at the two sisters, the heiress shook her head before noticing that Blake wasn't there and asked where she went. After hearing that she was at the docks, Weiss bid the two good-bye as she quickly headed towards her next destination.

On the way there, Weiss sighed as she watched the people of Vale set up for the Vytal Festival while also hearing about how some more Dust Stores getting robbed. Hearing that, Weiss couldn't help the scowl that formed upon her face. Especially since it was her family's Dust that was being stolen for whatever purpose. It could have been the White Fang, but Ruby did tell them all about her encounter with Roman Torchwick…so maybe he was the culprit? Only time would tell it seemed. Finally reaching her destination of the docks, she was surprised to see that there were still more people coming in for the tournament.

Spotting the cat faunus, she made her way over to Blake slowly, already having a feeling that Blake had noticed her the moment that she appeared on the docks. Moving closer to her, Weiss mentally sighed as she saw Blake tense, as if she was expecting another argument/confrontation. Knowing that she sort of deserved that, she bucked up and headed towards her, albeit at a meandering pace.

"Mind if I sit here?" she asked softly once she was within hearing distance. "If you don't want me to, I understand. I just…I want to apologize. I didn't mean to overreact the way that I did. It's not much of an excuse, but I do have a reason for my actions…" she said before faltering lightly. Blake was a faunus after all. What if…what if she approved of what the White Fang were doing to her company?

"I know. But you're not the only person that was attacked by the White Fang," Blake responded emotionlessly. "And you can sit down, I'm not going to bite…unless you ask that is."

"You've been hanging around Yang too much Blake Belladonna," she said with a light tease, causing Blake to scowl.

"And whose fault is that?" Blake snapped back, wincing lightly as soon as it exited her mouth. She didn't mean to say something so nasty, especially after Weiss just apologized…and now here she was giving the person she loved a verbal lashing.

"…Alright, I guess I deserved that," Weiss said after a few seconds. She had to bite her tongue from retorting quickly and in anger before sighing lightly. Looking around, she nodded to herself before opening her mouth again. "Blake…if you want…I can create some privacy for the two of us? I…I want to get over the shock…please?" she asked, hating how it sounded more like a plea instead of a request.

Blake stared at Weiss for a few seconds, mentally weighing her options before slowly nodding. If Weiss was willing to do this much, then she could give it a shot, right? What could possibly go wrong...?

 _All I want is what I had,_ _  
_ _I'd trade it all just to get her back._ _  
_ _She's moving on, but I guess I'm not._ _  
_ _Yeah, we all want what we ain't got._

As Blake was thinking that, a wolf faunus by the name of Calypso smirked as she watched the two girls interact. Unlike her other brothers and sisters in the White Fang who only knew Blake Belladonna as 'the traitor'; Calypso knew the cat personally…and was forced to take the punishments for desertion and betrayal in Blake's place. That was the final nail in the coffin for the brunette and turned her friendship to Blake into utter loathing.

"Well well well…look what we have here, a Black Cat and her Schnee," the wolfess said with a scowl.

"Cal?" Blake asked in surprise before seeing the anger in her eyes and instantly knew that something was wrong.

"You of all people don't get to call me that! You left me there and when Adam returned, he quickly punished me for your crimes Belladonna!" She shouted before drawing her twin katanas, instantly going in for the quick kill. If she brought back the corpse of the traitor and a Schnee…she knew she would be rewarded.

 _With Ruby and Yang_

"They've been gone quite a while, haven't they?" Ruby asked as she stared at the door, then the clock and finally Blake's bed. It had been four hours since Blake left, and two hours since Weiss left looking for her. To be honest, she was getting worried.

"Don't be like that Sis. Tell you what, why don't you go start looking for them, and if you don't find them within an hour, I'll help you search. Though you should start at the docks, since that's where Blake said she was going.

"True. I just hope they're okay," she said before activating her semblance and rushing out the door. If only her wish hadn't fallen on deaf ears…then maybe what would happen next wouldn't seem so bad.

 _With Blake and Weiss_

Blake dodged the wild swing before countering with Gambol Shroud, using her strength to deadlock the two blades in a test of strength. Seeing Weiss speeding towards Calypso, she bit back the retort on her tongue saying that this was her fight. Even back then, most of the time when they sparred it usually ended with either one of them barely winning or in a draw. Using her second katana to block Weiss's rapier, she scowled at her former friend. "What's this, resorting to have a Schnee fight your battles for you Blake? What happened to the person that was once second-in-command?!" she shouted causing Weiss to gasp lightly in surprise.

Blake cringed lightly as that piece of information was let out, knowing that Weiss would hate her all over again because of it, not that she could blame the girl. She had hidden her faunus status, why not her White Fang status as well? But that argument would have to come later, right now the two of them had a fight on their hands. "That person died when the White Fang started terrorizing innocents for no damn reason! I became a huntress to repent for my crimes," she shouted back before unsheathing the blade within and quickly transforming it into its gun mode, trying to catch the wolf off guard. Seeing the action, Calypso quickly jumped back, allowing the girls to catch a quick breath.

"You realize-"

"I know Princess…hopefully I still have the right to use that?"

"You do, but only because you gave the White Fang up for the right reasons. I still want to hear the full story though," Weiss responded, surprising Blake. Here the cat girl thought the heiress would be mad at her all over again, but apparently she wasn't. "Now then, why is she here?" Weiss asked; however, she wasn't able to get an answer as the wolf charged back in for round two. As they fought, both members of the Checkmate duo kept their senses open, not only to watch for the wolf faunus but also to get any clues as to why she was here.

After a second trade-off, all three members of the fight were covered in various scratches, some superficial while others were bleeding lightly. Calypso had more than both Weiss and Blake combined, but that was only because the two were working in tandem with each other; when one would block her blades, the other was scoring a hit. Growling lightly, the wolf girl jumped back before activating her Semblance, Duplicate. Similar to Blake's Shadow Semblance, Duplicate was able to make only one clone, but unlike Blake's semblance, her clone could take hits and dish them back out, but it only had half the power of Calypso herself.

"Weiss, be careful. Those aren't like my Shadows," Blake said as she held both parts of her weapon within her hands. Things were just about to get interesting…

 _With Ruby_

Ruby was perched on top of one of the canisters, staring through the scope of her High Caliber Sniper Scope (HCSS) Crescent Rose. When she arrived at the docks, she overheard the voice of one Roman Torchwick and something along the lines of 'be careful with those crates!' which caused the girl to be where she was right now. If there was one thing that was drilled into her brain during classes, it was this: Do not go into a fight without knowing what was going on. Hearing an explosion in the distance, Ruby instantly turned and focused her sights on that spot before seeing a few members of the White Fang head off in that direction.

 _'What are they doing here?'_ Ruby thought as she followed their progress through to where the explosion was just a few seconds before. Unable to get a good vantage point, she took her eye from the scope and picked up her weapon before heading towards the new location. Once there, she was surprised to see that Blake and Weiss were fighting someone that she didn't know; there was also the white fang members that were coming towards them as well. Checking her surroundings first, Ruby figured she was hidden well enough before taking her position as sniper once again and quickly fired a shot at one of the wolf fauni hitting it square in the chest. However, instead of seeing blood, she saw the wolf shimmer for a few seconds before disappearing altogether.

Unable to line up another shot at the second wolf, Ruby focused her sights on the three armed members of the White Fang. She just hoped that she would be able to keep them at bay or take them out without drawing too much more attention to herself, quickly moving to another location, just in case.

 _With Yang_

Yang waited the hour that she promised her sister and leader by doing a little bit of homework, which then turned into stretching, and then doing a few phantom punches. The buxom blonde of Team RWBY wasn't only worried, she was anxious. Some of her contacts had warned her about something going on around the docks sometime this week. She didn't want to bring it up to Blake since she didn't exactly know when it was going to happen, and the fact that it had to deal with the White Fang. Blake had asked Yang for advice during the week that Weiss was "exiled" from the room about it, and Yang suggested to talk to the girl about it and hope for the best. She had already let one secret out, what was another?

Sighing lightly, she checked the time once again before heading out, the keys of her motorcycle in her hand. She wanted to get there as soon as possible…especially since she had such a bad feeling about all of this. Getting to her motorcycle, she quickly placed the keys into the ignition before heading off into the night. She just hoped that whatever the reason was, that she would get there in time.

Hearing gunfire as she got to the docks, she scowled before getting off her Bumblebee and activated her wrist gauntlets. Glancing upwards, she quickly saw a spot of red and jumped towards it. A few seconds later she was next to her sister. Before Ruby could turn and shoot, the words 'Burning Flash' came out of Yang's mouth. After that, Yang asked what was going on.

"Checkmate is facing a Wolf faunus from White Fang, if the mask is to go by anything. It's been four minutes but she hasn't created another clone, so I think that's a negative side effect to her semblance. There's also other members doing something, but I haven't seen it yet, though I have been scoping for them. You can check it out if you want, the three I shot at came from that area," she said before pointing towards the left. Besides the three that came to investigate the initial fighting, a total of ten members had come to investigate, each being taken out by a bullet to the knee or incapacitated in some shape or form.

"Alright, will do Sis. Stay safe," Yang said before heading off in the location that Ruby pointed towards. Not only was she going to see what was going on, but also to stop whatever the White Fang was trying to do. As Yang sped off into the distance, she trained her sight back onto Weiss and Blake's opponent, hoping to get a kill shot in so that the three of them could find out what was really going on and stop it. Aiming once more, she let a bullet fly from her sweetheart.

 _With Blake and Weiss_

Blake and Weiss were having trouble dealing with the solid clone and Calypso, Weiss more so than Blake. The faunus was able to keep up with her former friend, but Weiss was having trouble dealing with the two separate weapons. Jumping back from a strike that would have taken her head off, the white-haired girl was about to start another fight between the clone before she heard a bullet being shot. Knowing the sound of it coming from Ruby's Crescent Rose, she was glad to see the clone shimmer for a few seconds before disappearing altogether.

"Damnit, what was that?!" Calypso shouted as she blocked the dual blades of Blake's weapon as she saw her clone going up in smoke, now knowing that she had to wait five minutes in order to create another one. Seeing the Schnee girl coming back to help Blake, she scowled before disengaging the stalemate that she was currently in.

"That, is what happens when you have friends watching your back," Blake said with a light smirk, knowing immediately that it was Ruby who fired that shot causing the wolf to grunt lightly as she felt the pointed end of the Schnee's rapier bite into her side. Cursing, she flipped her katana and swiped backwards hoping to get a lucky shot in on her. Hearing it hit metal, she focused the other katana on Blake and swung it in a downward arc, but that, too, was blocked by the sheathe of Gambol Shroud. Before she could retaliate, Blake brought the sword portion forward, scoring a heavy hit to the Wolf Faunus's arm. Hearing Cal yell in pain caused a small frown on Blake's face, but only for a few seconds before trying to score another hit. Cal had chosen her path just as she had.

However, Calypso was able to dodge the second blade, elbowing Weiss in the process. As she did this, she felt a bullet pass where her head had been just a few moments ago and felt that enough was enough. If Torchwick couldn't deal with these people with all of the grunts that he "bought" then that was on him. There were only two people that she was going to die for, and Roman Torchwick was not on that list. Jumping back as best as she could, she cradled her hurt arm before sheathing her blades.

"Alright Black Cat, you and your friend win," she said, hoping that wherever that sniper of theirs was that he or she would back down. Seeing that she didn't have a hole in her head and was currently breathing, she felt that was the case.

"Cal…" Blake started to say, hoping that after all of this that she could convince her old friend to see the light, same as she had. Seeing the angry look on her face after saying that, the cat faunus just sighed as she watched her go. If she had stayed a little longer, she would have seen the leader of Blake's team make her appearance.

"Blake, Weiss, you both alright?" Ruby asked worried as she changed her sniper rifle into that of her weapon's true form, her scythe.

"We're fine you dolt," Weiss said in her usual tone of voice. However, there was no malice held behind it like when they had first met. "Actually…I think we're more than fine," she admitted as Blake nodded. This happened right before they heard, and saw, a large explosion nearby.

"Yang?" Blake and Weiss asked as they looked at their leader with a questioning expression.

"Yang," Ruby replied with a light sigh. Seriously, she told her sister to wait until someone could come help her, but apparently Yang couldn't, or wouldn't, stand still long enough for that to happen. "Let's go see what my older sister has gotten into…" she said before heading into the direction where the explosion was, Team Checkmate right behind her.

 _With Yang_

Yang had made her way forward from where her sister had pointed her, knowing that something had to be going on over that way. Punching any guards that she came across into unconsciousness, the buxom blonde kept moving westward. Before long, she saw several members of the White Fang and a man wearing a white trenchcoat and a black bowler's hat. The orange hair was what cinched it, this was Roman Torchwick. Though why was the White Fang helping him? From what she remembered, they would never have stopped so low as to work with a human…mentally shrugging her shoulders, she cocked her arm back before punching the air in front of her, quickly causing the shell to eject from her gauntlet and hit the canister behind the White Fang members, not even hitting the bullhead that they were currently loading some of the crates into.

"Shit, what was that?!" Torchwick exclaimed as he looked around, seeing no one in the immediate vicinity. However, he didn't have to wait long as a blonde female jumped down from the crates and smirked.

"Damn, I missed," was all that she said as she cocked her fist back again, ready to let another shell out before having to cancel the attack and jump away from the various bullets that started coming her way. True she could have absorbed the damage and then retaliate with it thanks to her Semblance, but she also knew that it wouldn't stop her from lethal attacks.

Once all the gunfire stopped as the White Fang members exhausted their supply of bullets, Yang smirked before speeding off, using an explosive cartridge to increase her speed, just like how her sister would do with that scythe of hers, blowing past the minions and heading after Roman himself, knowing that he was the bigger threat.

Seeing the girl up close, Roman could only gain a quick glimpse of the girl before raising Melodic Cudgel to block the incoming punch, though he still did fly back from the force of the strike. "So this is the brawler that had Junior's undies in a twist a month or so ago. I can certainly see why," he said before blocking another strike from the girl, then using the handle of his cane weapon to grab one of her ankles, tripping her up in the process. As this happened, various members of the White Fang were emptying the various containers of their cargo and placing it on the flying vehicle, aptly named a bullhead.

As Yang went to get up, she quickly met the end of Roman's weapon, the end cap up and an aiming spectacle in front of her face. "But this is where it ends. Perhaps if you weren't so reckless you would actually have had a chance against me," he said in a monologue before using his aura to activate the firing mechanism. "Now come on, work faster! We need to get out of here due to that girl!" He shouted, causing several members of the terrorist group to scowl at his orders. Before he could enter the airship, he smirked. "Well Well, seems as if you didn't die after all," he said as he positioned his cane behind him in order to block the shot to his back, though he was somewhat surprised that it didn't explode like the others had during their recent encounter.

Seeing other members of the team standing next to the girl he fought he scowled, knowing when to cut his losses. However, he was unable to retreat into the safety of the airship as Red had shot at him using that sniper rifle of hers. Turning around, he could only respond in an annoyed fashion.

"What, you weren't happy with how we left last time Red?" he asked, getting a scowl from the girl and four quick shots in succession. "Now now, don't get mad. Though what did you all hope to accomplish, hm? Four huntresses-in-training versus me and these terrorist agents…" He asked the team, smirking as the various White Fang members had restocked their ammo cartridges and were ready to fire again.

"Everyone, Scatter!" Ruby shouted as she activated her Semblance and vanished out of sight.

 _All I want is what I had,_ _  
_ _Yeah, I'd trade it all just to get her back._ _  
_ _She's moving on, but I guess I'm not._ _  
_ _Yeah, we all want what we ain't got._

"No, Weiss!" Blake shouted out in shock as she watched her girlfriend take a bullet to the body. Turning towards the White Fang member who shot the person she loved, Blake's aura started to envelop her as a shade of purple/black Aura covered her form. Before the nameless minion could do anything, she threw one of the blades of Gambol Shroud at him/her, striking the heart. Pulling back, the ribbon that it attached to brought the blade out, instantly killing the member.

"Well well well…looks like the little kitty still has some fangs left. And here I thought the Schnee heiress pulled them all out. Adieu Pet of the Princess," Torchwick said with a smirk before the bullhead's door closed once he was safely inside the vessel. As it took to the air, Blake quickly sheathed her weapon before running to Weiss's side, ignoring the rest of the battle as she did so, especially since their opponents were fleeing. The heiress might be pissed at her, but that wasn't going to stop the cat faunus from not feeling pain from seeing Weiss like this...

Weiss felt someone's hand enter her's and slowly opened her eyes. Seeing the concerned amber coming from Blake, she frowned lightly. "You...dolt..."

"Weiss, please...don't speak. Save your strength," Blake said softly, desperately.

"While…we were apart…I had…time to think," she said before coughing lightly. "That means...I wanted…to tell you…before."

"Princess...please...stop talking," Blake pleaded as the snow-haired heiress continued speaking.

"Blake damnit, let me speak!" Weiss let out in an outburst before coughing violently. "In the time I was given...I thought about... what you said... and what every...one else said. And I've come...to realize..." at this she began coughing violently again. After she let her hand drop, she noticed blood within her hand. "I've come to realize...that I...that I...love you," at that, Weiss's eyes closed.

"Weiss?" Blake asked softly, trying to hear a heartbeat, a shallow breath or something that showed she was still alive. Hearing nothing, she started panicking. "Weiss!" she shouted as both Yang and Ruby came close to the couple, both having tears in their eyes as they saw the scene in front of them.

"Blake..." Yang whispered softly, knowing that there could be nothing to do for their friend now. Attempting to place a hand on her partner's shoulder, she missed due to the adrenaline starting to wear off and rested her hand on Weiss's shoulder instead. The blondette was about to say something before a look of shock and surprise came to her lilac eyes as she felt something underneath her thumb. "Rubes, she still has a pulse! It's weak, but it's there!" she shouted as Ruby looked towards her sister in surprise.

"Should I...?"

"Yes! Go, take princess and get her to the hospital. Use your speed sis!" Yang shouted as Ruby picked Weiss up bridal style before activating her Semblance, quickly rushing off towards the hospital.

"Please…don't be too late," Blake whispered softly.

 _Yeah, I wanted the world until my whole world stopped,_ _  
_ _You know a love like that ain't easily forgot._ _  
_ _I guess we all want what we ain't got._ _  
_ _Yeah, we all want what we ain't got._

 **-END-  
**

* * *

Dragon and Sword Master: Um…hi. This is a recording. Dragon and Sword Master has no future plans of continuing this since it was just something that was bugging him and stopping him from working on another story of his. He is now far away where no one can reach him. He would also like to inform his readers that he is sorry you've been waiting so long when it comes to "Son of A Kitsune", "Blood and Dreams: Entering Nightmares", "Naruto: The New Keyblade Master" and any other stories that he has sitting on the shelf. **HE WILL GET BACK TO THEM EVENTUALLY**

Good day.

This recording will self-destruct in 5…4…3…2…1

~A White Rose will only shine under Black Fire~


	2. Chapter 2

Dragon and Sword Master: I just want to go on record that I didn't get any death threats to do this. The idea for this chapter came to me after doing some monotonous work at my job and "All Our Days" up on my IPod via shuffle. The idea popped into my brain, and I decided to roll with it.

Weiss: I know I threatened you at least once…and so has my girlfriend.

Dragon and Sword Master: *whistles innocently* I have no idea what you're talking about. None whatsoever…

Weiss: *sighs* Whatever. I seriously want to know whether I live or die though, especially with what Cavetroll001 told you about the thumb having a small pulse…

Dragon and Sword Master: In my defense, I didn't know, but now that I do, I'll have to remember it for the future. And with that being said, I would also like to say that Shadow Nightblade gave me the idea for Blake's "speech" with chapter 164 of his story: A Snow Fox's Struggle.

Yang: Ryu…can I kill that guest reviewer? Please?

Dragon and Sword Master: Sorry Yang, you can't. And before I get to that Guest reviewer, there is one thing I'd like to mention: Dr. Nightsong and Acqua do not belong to me. They belong to two friends who graciously allowed me to use them, you two know who you are Kira-chan, Sukuna-kun. And to wrap this up, I want to personally thank FireSamurai and MercenaryGrax for their help in the story. If I were to list everything that they did then it would be about twenty pages or so before I get to the story! Now then, Mr. Guest Reviewer: (who's either to lazy or too much of a coward)

I already had this started by the time of your review. At the end of the first chapter, I said that I was going to leave it like that because I didn't have any plans to continue it. That's what a One-Shot is. However, plans changed when I was listening to "All our Days" and thought it would be good for the sequel while doing actual work.

Being called lazy is disrespectful to the author of any story (myself in this case). I didn't have to write the one-shot. I didn't have to write this chapter either. Furthermore, there are many/multiple writing styles out there and leaving it open-ended like that is one so that the reader (You) can come up to their own conclusion as to whether or not Weiss lived/died.

(In fact, both Shadow Nightblade and Cavetroll001 both came up with their own interpretation, Shadow with Weiss living and Cave with her dying *hears Blake hissing at that*)

Furthermore, if you listen to the song that the first chapter was based off of, it IS a sad song. I felt that giving the chapter a happy ending/ definite conclusion would not only dishonor the song but also dishonor what exactly I felt the one-shot should be; a story that tugs on the heartstrings to go along with a song that tugs on the heartstrings.

* * *

Chapter 2: Resolutions

One week had passed since Weiss had been critically shot and brought to the hospital clinging to life as if she still had something to do and was stubbornly refusing to die. It was also luck that the nurse who administered the young heiress into the Emergency Room/Urgent Care was able to accurately see that Weiss was indeed alive, and not just by chance. Still though, it was very close.

If Weiss's Aura had been any lower, then she would have been dead instantly, no matter how quick Ruby had gotten her partner to Vale Infirmary. The bullet had hit a rib in Weiss's chest before exiting. However, the splinters of said wound punctured the girl's chest, nicking an artery around the heart. It was due to her Aura that they were able to operate and repair the damage done.

"Still nothing Blake?" Ruby asked softly as she entered the room and closing the door behind her, making sure to make as little noise as possible.

"Still nothing," Blake said with a light sigh before looking at the red-themed girl. "Ruby…I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you for saving Weiss's life," she started to say only to be shushed by the look her leader gave her.

"Blake, we went over this already. You don't have to thank me for saving Weiss. She's my partner. I would have done it even if I hadn't been asked. The only thing I do regret was letting it happen in the first place," Ruby responded as Blake nodded in agreement. It was one of the first things that she had to get over when Weiss was in surgery. The fact that she was able to stay in case something happened while the two sisters explained to Headmaster Ozpin what happened was a small blessing in disguise, though at the same time, she felt bad about that; it was because of her in the first place that Weiss came to the Docks.

"But…"

"We also came to an agreement that you weren't going to blame yourself for what happened either, if you do recall," Ruby added as she adopted her best Yang glare to show that she was serious. "Now then, why don't you go back to the dorm and get some sleep? I'll come get you if anything changes, scout's honor," she said with that childish grin of hers in place...albeit it was a little forced.

Knowing that she couldn't win against her leader at the moment, she just shook her head and sighed lightly before getting up as Ruby took her seat, knowing that the scythe wielder would stay until visiting hours were up. Heading back towards the lobby, Blake rubbed her arm slightly as she started going down memory lane.

" _I still can't believe how long ago it was since we first met. Me, a cat Faunus and ex-member of the White Fang dating the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company. But still…she has vowed to change what her father and grandfather have done to us"_ she thought before hearing a commotion coming from the lobby/waiting area. Heading towards that location at a quickened pace, she was quite curious as to what was going on.

 _Long ago, before we met,  
I dreamed about you.  
The peace you'd bring.  
The songs we'd sing.  
The way you'd make things new.  
_

"Sir, if you could please calm down! Your daughter is currently in a coma and only a few selective people have been cleared to see her!" An orderly nurse exclaimed as Blake got within hearing distance.

"What do you mean I cannot see my daughter?" the man asked, highly annoyed. When he had first heard that his daughter was injured, he had dropped everything that he was doing and now he was being told he couldn't see his own daughter, yet other people could?

"… _Weiss's father? He's here?!"_ the cat faunus thought in alarm as she took in the man's description, though with the way that Weiss held so much contempt for him, she never thought he would look…so normal. Wearing a simple attire that consisted of a white business suit, Blake silently gulped as she made her way towards the man that was her girlfriend's father. Once she got closer, she could see that accompanying the white suit were accessories of a light blue color: his tie and cufflinks on the sleeves and collar were most prominent. Though his cobalt blue eyes were currently glaring at the nurse

"Ah, Miss Belladonna, a pleasure to see you," the headmaster of Beacon said towards Blake as he headed towards the counter. "You as well Mr. Schnee. Now then, what's the problem?" he asked.

"I will tell you what the problem is Ozpin. After doing all of my research, I found out that Beacon Academy was the safest place for Weiss to get a formal education, as well as to adhere to her fancy of becoming a huntress. And yet here I am, after receiving a call from the hospital saying that my daughter is in a coma! And now they will not let me see her, yet they will let strangers see her!" He said before starting to get angry once again, finishing off with an angry exclamation before grumbling about why he didn't just hire retired hunters and/or huntresses to teach her.

Ozpin narrowed his eyes at that before taking in a small breath of air before letting it out, controlling his anger at the racist man in front of him. "There was a reason for that Thomas, and in the future I request that you do not attempt to drag my name, or my school, in the mud like that. Your daughter and her girlfriend," at this Blake cringed lightly at the fact though it went unnoticed by Mr. Schnee, "were at the Docks due to a lover's spat. After that, they spotted something suspicious and went to check it out, and their partners came a few seconds later since they were worried about the two. Weiss was hit by a stray bullet that narrowly missed her heart," Ozpin responded, not needing to say anything more.

He knew that he had already given away something that would irritate the man, he didn't need to say anything else. "And because she is your daughter, I made it so that only her team could see her at the moment, not thinking that you would have time to come and see her due to your busy schedule. If you will give me a few seconds, I can correct that," he added. _'Though you claim you dropped everything, why did it take you a week in order to come see her?'_ he silently asked himself, wishing that he could ask Thomas that question without a rebuttal. However, he knew that would never happen.

Thomas took the information in for a few seconds as he calmed down, seeing that it was actually smart of Ozpin to restrict access to his daughter's room, especially when it was the White Fang that caused this in the first place. Now that he was calmer, he sighed softly before turning towards the nurse and apologized for his actions before then turning to Ozpin and repeating it. After that, he repeated Ozpin's words in his head.

"Wait. _**Girlfriend?!**_ " He asked, shocked and already fearing the worse…especially since he had already told Weiss he wanted an heir from her after marrying a man of his choosing. Hearing Ozpin's chuckle, he turned his ire towards the Headmaster of Beacon Academy. "And who exactly is my daughter dating, if you know she is dating a female?"

"That…you will have to ask Weiss yourself when she wakes up. I shouldn't have even told you she was dating in the first place," Ozpin responded before looking over to Blake, silently apologizing to her for giving the man the information in the first place. "Now then, Miss Belladonna, if you could inform Miss Rose for me please?" He asked, silently ordering the girl to leave for right now to which the faunus girl nodded and headed back towards Weiss's room, albeit only after saying a proper goodbye to Mr. Schnee.

' _Good. That's an explosion I don't need right now…'_ Ozpin, and ironically Blake, both thought as they each headed to deal with what was asked of them.

 _Then one day, you arrived.  
I heard your angel cry.  
Helpless, small, and perfect,  
Welcome to your life.  
_

"If the Ice Queen doesn't wake up soon, I think we should do something for our kitty, to help her get away from the stress," Yang said on the scroll to her sister. The buxom blonde was taking a break from transporting them to and from the hospital with her motorcycle, and now using the time to collect a few things for the others on the team: Dust for the knocked out princess, some snacks for herself and cookies for her sister. Blake said she didn't need anything at the moment and was fine…well, as fine as she could be with Weiss in a coma.

"Agreed, but what? Anything related to ice would remind her of Princess and I'm not sure what books she does or doesn't have. I mean yeah, we could take her to Tukson's Book Trade, but that's the best I've got sis," Ruby replied before hearing a knock on the door. Looking at the door strangely she told her sister that someone was coming in and quickly said a good bye before hanging up on Yang.

"Blake? What are you doing back…Headmaster?" Ruby asked, confused as to what was going on. Then there was the mysterious man, but since both Blake and their Headmaster weren't wary of him, then she wouldn't be either…until he proved otherwise. Still though, she was curious as to who he was.

"Do you mind giving us a few minutes Miss Rose, Miss Belladonna?" Ozpin asked, getting a nod from the cat faunus and an awkward nod from the red-hooded girl before both left the room. Once the door closed, Ruby turned and looked at the black-themed girl.

"Okay, spill. What's going on Blake? And why are you looking as if you're ready to bolt into the darkness," Ruby asked as she looked at her teammate worriedly.

"That man…is Thomas Schnee. CEO of the Schnee Dust Company, and more importantly Weiss's father. Ozpin already let it slip that Weiss is dating another female and if he finds out…I mean, I know I promised Weiss we would tell him together but…" at this Blake just stopped speaking as she saw the door handle starting to turn. She of all people did not want the bastard to hear what she was about to say. At least not now.

"…like to know when she wakes up," Thomas said as the two headed out the door, Ozpin first and Thomas just a few seconds after him.

"We'll see. Her teammates deserve to know first and foremost after all," he responded neutrally, which produced a small scowl to form on the face of Thomas Schnee.

"So you are saying that her _team_ should know before her father?" he asked, forcing the word team out as if it were poison.

"Nothing of the sort sir. I am just thinking of my student's best interests. And what I think Weiss needs the most when she wakes up is a familiar face, not a stranger," Ozpin responded, though the underlying message was clear; Weiss thought of her team as family more so than her own father. Pushing his glasses up, Ozpin mentally smirked as he saw the man's eyes narrow in suppressed anger. Once he left, Blake's shoulders sagged lightly in relief before hearing Ozpin say her name again.

"Yes?" she asked, indicating that he had her attention.

"I want to apologize for letting him know about your relationship with young Weiss here," he said before putting a hand up, stalling her from asking the question that he knew that was coming. "And as for how I know, I am the headmaster of a school for Hunters, and Huntresses, in training. I know pretty much everything that goes on within my school; however, as long as both you and her are happy, then who am I to judge? Now then, I must inform you that on Monday morning, the rest of Team RWBY must return to classes. Until then, I bid you both a farewell, Miss Rose, Miss Belladonna." Ozpin said before letting them head back inside.

"Well…as my sister would say, that was a thing. Though I never expected Ozpin to stand up for us like that," Ruby admitted before hearing her scroll go off. Seeing that it was Yang, she apologized to Blake before stepping outside and taking the call.

"Rubes, I just saw a man head out of here looking pissed followed shortly by Ozpin as I was pulling into the parking deck. Did something happen?" Yang asked, causing Ruby to smirk, even though her sister couldn't see that.

"Well…you could say that," she said before telling her sister exactly what happened and how quickly the headmaster came to their defense. After she was done, she heard a low whistle coming from her sister.

"Sounds like you had quite an adventure with kitty. I'm heading inside now, and I'll be up there shortly," she said before ending the call.

 _At the same Time, Inside Hospital Room_

Blake thought over the conversation with Ruby…and the one she overheard between Ozpin and Thomas before the headmaster talked to her and the team. It was a lot to take in as the sole faunus member of Team RWBY, especially with the close shave of Mr. Schnee finding out that she was dating his daughter. She still didn't want to confront the man, but knew that it would have to be done eventually.

As she was about to leave the room, she thought she heard her name being called. Turning around, she could have sworn she heard it again. Heading back to Weiss's side, she saw the heiress slowly opening her icy blue eyes…and staring straight into the surprised amber eyes of her girlfriend.

"Don't speak Princess, you're in the hospital. You've been in a coma for a week," Blake said in as an informative manner as possible, but on the inside she was letting her emotions run wild. Weiss had finally woken up! Pushing a button on the side of the bed to call for a nurse, Blake stayed by Weiss's side as she told the heiress what happened over the past week, keeping her calm as the nurses disconnected the various wires that were monitoring her health. Once everything was disconnected, Weiss slowly got up and placed her feet on the ground, the cat faunus instantly by her side as the heiress lost her balance…if only for a few seconds.

"Thanks…" she muttered, hating feeling this weak.

"Anytime princess. Anytime."

 _And on that day, I made a vow.  
Whispered and true.  
No matter what, no matter how,  
I made this promise to you._

 _I will cling, I will clutch,_  
 _I'll hold onto you, I won't turn away._  
 _I won't leave, I won't go,_  
 _I will stay with you all our days._

"Oh come on Queenie, it can't be that bad," Yang stated as Weiss glared at the blonde.

"Until you wake up from a week long coma and deal with the stiffness and potential muscle atrophy that goes along with it, then I suggest you stop. Or do I need to find a pair of scissors? I'm sure if I ask Dr. Nightsong nicely, she'll let me borrow a pair," Weiss asked sweetly. And it wasn't like Yang could retaliate, not when she was still healing.

"Alright alright, jeez. Why do you always target the hair of awesomeness?" Yang said with a light pout as they stood outside the female's office door. "Well, I guess this is it for now. Give me a call on your scroll when you're done and I'll come pick you up. Good luck with your check up," Yang said as Weiss headed through the door. Once the heiress did so, Yang shook her head lightly.

' _Only three days. Rubes, Kitty and myself have been able to help her so much it seems. Though she's still a little on the stiff side…_ ' the buxom blonde thought as she headed back to her motorcycle. Putting the helmet back on, she started her vehicle up and headed out. She was planning on meeting her sister and Blake up at the mall in order to kill some time as well as conveniently tease and help her sister get some clothes for her own date with a certain rabbit faunus.

Blake and Ruby were waiting for Yang in the food court, having taken an airship into Vale while Yang took Weiss over to the hospital for her checkup on her motorcycle. Blake would have volunteered since she had knowledge of driving as well (thanks to the White Fang) but Yang was quite vehement about the fact that only she was the one to drive her prized possession. And as Yang put it, she "wanted to make sure Queenie didn't get…side tracked," causing the girlfriend of Weiss Schnee to blush lightly at what Yang meant by that statement.

After a few minutes, Yang called Ruby up on her scroll and asked where they were. Getting the answer that they were 'at the food court' the blonde quickly made her way there after parking her bike and padlocking it so that no one would steal it. Once seeing her sister and partner, she waved before heading over to the duo.

"Hey there Team Ladybug!" she said with a grin causing both girls to groan lightly at that.

"Ever since I suggested that as a Co-op Attack name for me and Blake, you've wanted to use that, haven't you sis?" Ruby asked, getting an unashamed nod from said girl, causing both human and faunus girls to sigh at that.

"You're never going to change, are you?" Ruby finally asked getting a shake of the head from the blonde.

"Anyways, as lovely as this conversation is, didn't you two want my help picking out dresses for the dance? To impress your rabbit and the heiress?" Yang asked. To accompany the Vytal Festival, along with the tournament, Beacon was going to add in something different this year: a school wide dance.

"We did…" Blake said, getting Ruby to nod as well. "Though what about you? Got any guy, or girl, we could help you with partner?" she asked, getting Yang to shake her head at that.

"I'm not dressing to impress just anyone actually. I'll probably just flirt with all the cute guys like I usually do."

"You know one of these days that 'flirting' you do is going to get you into trouble Yang Xiao Long," Blake responded to her partner. But Yang had indeed promised the two that she would help pick out outfits for them, even if the dance was still a little ways away.

"Yeah yeah, I know. But I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself," she said, ending the conversation on a good note before the three of them got up and walked through the mall, heading towards the area of the mall where all the clothing shops were held. On the way there, they ran into a familiar face, causing Ruby to gulp lightly. Blake took notice of it however and silently shook her head in understanding.

"Hey Coco, what brings you here?" Yang asked. "Helping Velvet out?" She asked after noticing the rabbit faunus standing a little behind Coco. What? If you were dating Yang's sister, then you would be a little afraid as well.

"Something like that," Coco responded. She knew that her partner wanted to get a special dress for the dance in order to impress Ruby, but didn't think that the others would be here as well. Speaking of which… "I um…heard what happened at the docks. Is Weiss alright?" she asked.

"She's doing fine. Actually right now she's with her doctor which is why she's not with us at the moment, not that she would seeing as she probably has a thousand dresses by now," Yang said with a light laugh. "Now then, which stores were you planning on going in? That way I know which one to keep Rubes out of."

"And what, dear sister, do you mean by that?" Ruby asked, taking her 'leader voice' to her sister.

"Well if you want to ruin the surprise of finding out what your girlfriend is wearing, then I guess we can shop at the same place…" Yang started to say before getting a shake of the head from the younger brunette.

"I think it would be good, for us to keep the other in suspense," Velvet said, getting a nod from Coco as well, thinking it was a good idea. Ruby didn't think so at first, but saw that she was outvoted and ultimately agreed with the decision. "It's not like we won't see them eventually Ruby…it is only a month away."

"I know…but at the same time it's still a while to wait," Ruby responded, lightly whining. This caused Blake and the others to laugh and once the cat faunus got her laughter under control, she responded that the best things came to those who waited. After that, Coco and Velvet waved goodbye, promising to get together sometime in the near future. Hearing her scroll going off, she saw that Weiss was done with her appointment for the day.

"Blake…do you mind…?"

"Not at all. And…thanks. For helping Weiss. It means a lot to me," Blake replied.

"You don't have to keep thanking us Kitty. We're a team. And teammates look out for each other, just like any other family does Blake Rose," Yang stated, causing the faunus to look at her strangely. "What? I consider you family just like I do Rubes and Queenie. Why do I think I have nicknames for each of you but no one else, besides Velvet?" the blonde asked, getting a soft grin from Blake. "Now then, I'll pick up your girlfriend, you help Ruby out with a dress alright? And don't forget to get one for yourself either!" She said before heading back towards her bike, not witnessing the blush coming from the cat faunus as she explained herself.

' _Who knew that Yang could be so thoughtful like that…'_ She thought to herself before turning to their leader and headed into a random store, hoping that her outings with Weiss would help her out here.

 _Years of joy have passed since then.  
With time I've seen you grow.  
Watched you play, new each day.  
I begged the time to slow.  
_

"Are you sure you're going to be okay here by yourself?" Yang asked as she looked at Weiss. After she had picked the recovering girl up, the blonde had returned back to Beacon and to their dorm.

"I'm fine, honest. Dr. Nightsong actually said that I have a few more sessions just to make sure everything is alright, but she thinks that I'm completely in the clear. I really do need to thank the Dolt for saving my life…" Weiss said lightly. And she hated to admit something like that; if Ruby Rose wasn't her partner, she would have most likely died that day. "What?" she asked after hearing Yang sigh lightly at that.

"You and Blake are perfect for each other at times, you know that? I just got finished telling her the same thing: you don't have to keep thanking us Queenie. We're a team. And teammates look out for each other, just like any other family does Weiss Rose," she said before dissolving into a state of giggles at the face the Ice Queen was getting. "What? I consider each member of this team as a part of my family and Rose is easier to say than 'Xiao Long' all the time, though so does Weiss Rose…perhaps I should just call you White Rose instead?" Yang asked, getting a sigh out of the heiress for the Schnee Dust Company.

"You had a moment there for a few seconds…and then you blew it. But honestly, I'm fine. I'm probably going to be catching up on all this work, do a little research and then either surf on my scroll for a bit or take a light nap. Go help my Black Cat pick out an awesome dress for the dance so that you can help me pick out mine," Weiss replied, getting a light smile from Yang in return.

"Alright then, though I'm not going to give any details about it you realize?" Yang commented, getting a nod from Weiss before heading back out. Once outside of the door, she called Ruby and asked if she was still at the mall. Getting a confirmation that they were, Yang headed back to her bike with a light smile on her face. She was glad that Blake and the others had gotten the Ice Queen of Beacon out of her shell. As soon as Yang left, she felt her scroll vibrating. Seeing that it was her father, she inwardly groaned before answering.

"Hello father"

"Weiss, it is good to hear your voice. How are you doing?" Thomas asked over the phone as Weiss sat next to her bed on the floor. He actually sounded a little concerned, which surprised the white-haired girl, if only a little.

"I am actually doing fine father. With the help of the others, I have gotten back to my normal place in classes," she said, having a feeling that she could just feel the light grin on her father's face as she said that…and it was technically true. Without the others, she would have been lost without all of the notes that Blake had gotten, and the assignments that she got from her partner and her older sister. Sadly though… that was the only way she could have impressed her father.

"That is natural for a Schnee. Now then, have there been any more White Fang attacks I should know about? I can send Areku and Amaya if you want me to," he replied, causing Weiss to roll her eyes at that. And as much as she would like to see the twins that were part of the family's bodyguard decal, she didn't need them, not at Beacon.

"Father, I'm a huntress-in-training. I do not need them to protect me anymore. Besides, I have my team to help me as well," she responded.

"Speaking of your team…you still have not told me about your girlfriend," he asked, keeping the subtle order of 'tell me who she is now' out of his voice…or at least he tried. But Weiss caught it all the same.

"Father, we have had this conversation before. Not only is that something for the two of us to discuss with you face-to-face, but I am not going to tell you her name, or talk to you about it over the phone. If I were, I would have gone to video," she replied before yawning lightly. "Sorry father, I am going to have to cut this short. Good night," she said before ending the call and placing her scroll down on the table next to her, rubbing her head lightly as she could feel a migraine coming on. Hearing the door open, Weiss looked up and saw her girlfriend come inside; however a look of worry crossed over her face as she saw the black eye starting to form and got up off the floor and headed towards Blake.

"Blake, what happened?"

"Cardin and his idiots happened. Again," Blake said unamused as she moved to her bed. Weiss just sat there and listened, knowing that there was more to the story. Blake wouldn't have jeopardized herself like this just because Cardin and his team bullied a Faunus. "This time it was Acqua, and well…"

"Wait, Acqua's that new cat faunus right? The one you told me that you befriended during my coma?" she asked, getting a nod from the black cat and causing the heiress to sigh. "Let me guess, they pulled her tail while her teammates weren't around?"

"Yeah. And well…I didn't see her being bullied and attacked, I saw a younger me. And when that happened I um…kinda lost it?" she asked sheepishly, getting a raised eyebrow from the heiress.

"You, of all people…lost it?" Weiss asked, somewhat amused. Before she could stop, she let out a light laugh at that. Seeing her girlfriend frown, Weiss created a glyph and quickly added ice dust to it in order to create an impromptu ice pack. "Sorry...I needed that though, especially after dealing with my father," Weiss explained as she continued holding the Ice infused glyph to Blake's eye.

"Thomas Schnee just called for the sake of calling?" Blake asked, a little surprised at that as she saw Weiss start rubbing her temples again.

"No. He wanted to know how I was doing and if there were any more White Fang attacks, actually suggesting to send over two of my favorite bodyguards if that was the case. I highly suspect that they would have been ordered to try spying on me to see who I'm dating, not that they would. He also tried fishing for information about you…again," she said with a light sigh. "I'm sort of glad that he's starting to care, but at the same time I'm annoyed that that he's only constantly calling because he wants to get information, especially when it isn't someone he 'hand-picked' for me."

"Sounds like the princess wants to be rebellious," Blake said with a teasing smirk before heading to her bed and sitting down on it, using the desk to get up there quickly.

"Oh just go and choke on a hairball Black Cat," Weiss scoffed, though there was no maliciousness in her voice as she said that. A few seconds passed in silence. "Let me know if you want me to dissolve that glyph or not," she said after a while. And while she liked having the dorm room to herself and her girlfriend, Weiss couldn't help but wonder where the two sisters were…

 _And though I miss the little girl,  
You've made me awful proud.  
Funny how our lives change,  
'Cause you're my hero now._

 _With Ruby and Yang_

"Ugh…I can't believe Ms. Goodwitch wanted to give us detention when all we did was defend ourselves. Cardin or Blake I could understand, since they were the fighters, but we were just trying to make sure no one else got involved…" Yang whined, getting a light giggle from her sister as they headed back from the cafeteria. The threesome (Blake, Yang and Ruby) had gone there after looking at dresses in order to get some food, especially since free food was better than paying for anything at the food court and those dresses weren't exactly cheap either.

"You blame Blake though? Cardin was harassing another cat faunus. If I was in Blake's shoes, I'd go postal on him myself. Seriously, half the school are Faunus and he still pulls that shit? Sorry," Yang replied, knowing that her sister didn't like her using foul language like that, at least not often.

"No, you're right. Hell…if Blake didn't start wailing on him as badly as she did, I might have, though I wouldn't have gone as far, well unless it was Vel. Thankfully, he knows not to mess with her now, but still," Ruby said with a light sigh before opening the door to their dorm.

"Hey there Team Checkmate," Yang said with a grin, only receiving a glare from Weiss at such a nickname for the two of them.

"Don't start Yang. And be quiet, Blake just fell asleep," she hissed out. Weiss had noticed the cat girl had indeed fallen asleep a few minutes ago and had stopped supplying Aura to the Glyph that she imbued with a small amount of Ice powdered dust. Though because of her quick thinking, no swelling around Blake's eye had occurred.

"Sorry," Yang replied in a light voice before heading over to her area of the room, grabbing a few things before heading to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready for bed. As she was doing that, Weiss turned to her partner.

"So…what really happened? Blake told me the gist of things, but I know for a fact she wouldn't just get a black eye from Cardin for no reason, she would have used her Semblance otherwise," Weiss commented. "Ruby, what aren't you telling me?" Weiss asked/demanded as Ruby looked at the floor, not meeting Weiss's eyes.

"Blake's scary when she's mad…you know that? She looked as if she was going to kill Team CRDL…Sis stopped her though she wasn't aiming for the face, honest! And Blake had this scary purple aura around her…" Ruby said as she started off softly before starting to ramble, hoping not to get her sister in trouble.

"Ruby, relax! It's okay, I understand."

"Honest?"

"Yes you dolt, I'm being honest. I'm not going to be angry at your sister just because she hit my girlfriend in the face to knock her out of whatever it was that happened to her," Weiss said with a light shake of her head before Yang stepped out of the bathroom in her pajamas, her hair cascading down like it usually did during the night.

"Shower's free~" she sang, though in a softer voice as she remembered that her partner was still sleeping. Seeing her younger sister dart inside, she couldn't help but giggle softly at that. Once the door closed; however, Yang could feel Weiss's eyes boring a hole into her and subconsciously gulped at that.

"I know what actually happened Yang Xiao Long, and I'm not going to blame you for the actions you took. From what the Dolt said, it sounds like you stopped it before it could get any worse. Just try and make sure it doesn't happen again, or else" she said before the bathroom opened up and Ruby stepped out from the bathroom. Weiss headed in and took a quick shower herself. Once done, she quickly got into her own set of pajamas and headed back into the main room, seeing the rest of her team fast asleep. As she was about to make her way towards her bed and join the rest of them in the World of Dreams, she heard a soft whimper. Seeing that it was coming from Blake, the heiress frowned lightly before heading over to her, the whimpers growing more frequent as she did so.

' _Whatever happened must have caused her subconscious to bring back bad memories…'_ she thought before hearing a soft moan of pain coming from the cat girl. After hearing that sound, she quickly made up her mind and got into the bed next to her, carefully wrapping her arms around Blake so that she wouldn't wake up. She knew that in the morning Yang would probably tease the two of them senseless, but right now, her Black Cat needed her. "I'm here Blake…and I'm not going away," she whispered softly before making herself comfortable and falling asleep next to her girlfriend.

 _But things in life will rearrange.  
Friends come and go.  
Don't ever doubt, don't ever fear,  
I'm always here and you know.  
_

Luckily both Blake and Weiss were up before any of the two siblings. With both of them blushing, Blake gave her a light kiss on the cheek before whispering a 'thank you' before letting the heiress get up and take her morning shower.

After that fateful day, a month had quickly passed as normal: wake up, do morning routines, get a quick breakfast and meet up with Team JNPR or Team CFVY if they were lucky, go to class, take "notes", get lunch, spar/train or more lectures, go into the Emerald Forest for some hands-on training, get dinner, do night time activities/homework, get changed for bed then go to sleep. Soon, it would be the night of the dance and the start of the Vytal Festival. However, Weiss was getting a little nervous, especially since she had been seeing several reporters and other news media starting to trickle into Vale due to the festival.

"Princess, what's wrong?" Blake whispered as they walked through Vale's streets with the rest of their team, looking at the decorations that were starting to fill the streets.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked, also noticing that her partner had been getting the jitters ever since the dance started getting closer and closer. She was worried for her partner and hoped that she wasn't getting cold feet…

Looking around to make sure that no one was around, Weiss sighed. "All these reporters around, for the dance, for the tournament, for the festival in general…I'm afraid that somehow one of these reporters will get something on me and that my father will find out through some sort of scandal," she said before feeling an arm around her shoulder.

"You worry too much Queenie. Besides, if your father does find out someway somehow, then you know we've got your back Weiss. What's the worst that can happen?" she asked as they strolled around, just taking the day to do some window shopping and passing the time.

Weiss moved Yang's arm off of her shoulder before turning towards Yang. "He could disown me for one meaning that I would lose the status of 'Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company'. Second, he could force me back home and get tutors to finish my schooling. And that's just what I can think of off the top of my head," she said with a light sigh. And with that, Weiss had unintentionally killed the mood that the four had.

"Perhaps…we should go back to Beacon…we do have tomorrow off to get things ready for the festival after all, and it is starting to get late," Ruby said as she got nods from the other members of her team. As they headed back, Blake grabbed Weiss's hand and squeezed gently, getting her attention. Once she had it, the faunus smiled lightly.

"I won't say 'don't worry' because I know you will, but we will get through this, together. You're stuck with me whether you like it or not Weiss Schnee," the cat faunus said, causing Weiss to let a small, soft smile to form.

"I hope so Blake…I hope so," the heiress responded as the two of them caught up with Ruby and Yang before everyone boarded the airship and headed back to Beacon. Once there, they quickly made their way back to the dorm room before heading to sleep. Little did they know that the dance would be the beginning of several problems…all of them centering back to one man: Thomas Schnee.

 _I will cling, I will clutch,  
I'll hold onto you, I won't turn away.  
I won't leave, I won't go,  
I will stay with you all our days._

Ruby smiled lightly as she placed her dress on the bed, looking around and seeing the others doing the same, except for Blake. Between the four of them; however, she noticed that her dress was the most complicated when it came to design. Whereas Yang and Weiss had matching white dresses, hers was a multi-layered piece that consisted of a red sleeveless dress accented with black lace. The first layer consisted of a soft looking gray shirt, but unlike her secondary outfit, this one seemed to sparkle just slightly in the moonlight. Next to it was the main thing, a red sleeveless dress. Though she had to admit that she was a little bit nervous putting it on, especially since the dress didn't offer the ambiguity of her chest like with Weiss and Yang. Glancing over at her sister, she had a slight feeling Yang wanted to get this dress for her in the first place. The fact that the dress only reached halfway down her legs, also made her nervous. Though what she was really dreading was putting on the high heels that Weiss wore all the time. She just knew that she was going to have trouble with those…

"You're not getting changed?" Weiss asked curiously after she returned from the bedroom wearing her dress, having placed her ponytail up into a more stylish looking bun. Turning around to look at her girlfriend, Blake couldn't speak for a few seconds, just drinking in her girlfriend's beauty with her eyes.

"See something you like Kitty?" Yang asked teasingly, getting Blake to blush heavily before smirking lightly. "I do actually. I see my girlfriend making that dress look much better than you Blondie," she replied with a teasing smirk.

"Hey!" she responded, getting a light laugh from the others and distracting Weiss from the fact that she hadn't answered her question. As that was happening, both Blake and Weiss were unknowingly doing the same action: rummaging through their personal belongings looking for something. Blake found her box first, a light smile on her face as she remembered when she went into Vale in order to get the necklace with a cat pendant and two black gems within the eyes. It took a while to save up for it, but she had bought it. Smiling lightly she brought it back out, before a look of surprise reached her eyes as Weiss held a box similar to the one she held.

"I guess…great minds think alike?" Weiss asked

"Yeah…let's go with that. You really do look beautiful though Weiss. White like snow…" she said, mumbling the last part, but Weiss had heard it all the same, blushing lightly.

"L-let's just switch boxes Black Cat," Weiss stuttered lightly, causing Ruby to stifle a giggle, Yang tried to do it as well, but couldn't, receiving a glare from Weiss before handing Blake her box while taking the box that Blake handed to her. At the same time, they opened the box. Weiss saw the Black Cat necklace and let out a small gasp. When Blake had opened her box, she was surprised to see a necklace in the plush box. The chain was similar to the one that she got for Weiss, but Blake's necklace had a small pendant on it as well, this one was of a snowflake. What caused Blake to gasp in surprise was the thirteen small crystals placed in the middle and the twelve edges of the snowflake, just like…

"Weiss, thank you…but why is this your symbol? I thought you didn't want others to know about us?" the faunus asked, curious as her animal nature was.

"No one is going to look at the necklace twice Blake, plus it's for a special occasion. And if anyone does ask, you can just lie and say that you got it as a Christmas or birthday gift." Weiss responded.

"Alright. I just wanted to make sure," Blake said. True she was a little saddened that she didn't want to come out and tell everyone just yet, but then again, the cat girl did understand why so didn't say anything about it. "Now go on with Ruby and Blondie, Princess. You'll see me at the dance in my dress, promise" she said, wanting to surprise the heiress.

"Before I go…would you mind help putting this on? And then I'll help you with yours if you want," Weiss said, knowing that the two sisters had most likely already gone ahead by now. Blake nodded in agreement and asked for her to turn around before unclasping the necklace and placing it gently around Weiss's neck and snapping it close.

"It's not too tight is it? I can redo it if you want," Blake said before getting a negative from the heiress, who told her that it was perfect. Quickly doing the same thing for Blake, Weiss's snowflake necklace was settled perfectly on Blake's body, getting a smile from Weiss.

"How about that, a Princess and her Royal Cat?"

"Weiss…leave the puns to Yang please?" Blake asked, seeing Weiss frown if only just a little. "But…for a first attempt, it wasn't all that bad. Now get going. I'll join you shortly," she said before Weiss just let out a small smirk and headed out the door. Once that happened, Blake smiled lightly as she closed the door and opened the bag that contained her dress.

"I hope that she likes this…" she muttered to herself after looking at the simplistic looking purple dress. She was drawn to it when she saw how it glimmered in the display case and it actually did so within the light from the lamp hit it. Carefully placing it on, she slipped Weiss's necklace out of the collar so that it showed on the dress. Even if she was still worried about her girlfriend, she wasn't going to upset her just because of a silly motion on her part. Turning off the light and closing the door, she smiled lightly as she made her way towards the courtyard. Checking to make sure no one was around, she undid her bow for a fraction of a second before retying it, though making it a little looser than normal. The weatherman did say it would be a calm night after all and Blake didn't want to have to keep her ears so tightly bound if she didn't have to.

Once she made her way outside, she was a little surprised as to how many people were already out and about, a little bit worried about not being able to find Ruby, Yang or Weiss. Having a small amount of panic come to her face, she squashed it down quite quickly. She knew that she would find the three girls that made up her team somehow, someway. And even if she didn't, she knew she would have danced with other friends as well, which is what she did.

A few hours later, Blake had just came back outside with a drink of punch in her hand, exhausted from dancing with several of her friends: Yatsu, Sun, Neptune, Jaune, Pyrrha, among many others; however, she had not seen her girlfriend or any of her team. Nor did she see Velvet either. Spotting a bench nearby, she quickly made her way towards it, sighing softly as she sat down. Sure she had fun, but Blake needed a break.

"There you are Kitty. Having fun?" Yang asked as she held a drink in one hand, and a small plate of food in the other. It seemed as if her partner had the same idea that she had, though unlike Yang, Blake wasn't hungry yet.

"A bit. Have you seen your sister and her girlfriend, or mine for that matter?" Blake asked. She had heard Coco explain the dress to Yang in great detail and was actually quite interested in how it looked.

"I have actually. And apparently Coco and I have the same idea when it comes to a dress. It's a lot like Rubes and well…oh hey, there they are. Rubes, Vel, over here!" Yang said as she placed her drink down on the bench before waving the couple over. Once Blake could see the two, she could see that Yang wasn't lying. Whereas Ruby's was a red and black dress with layers and a black sash, Velvet's dress was mostly a light green with brown accents on it to break up the color. Ruby's gray was replaced with Velvet's darker green. On the brown sash was a row of black buttons, adding a decorative flare to the dress. Unlike Ruby's dress; however, Velvet had a small amount of her shoulders covered, the sleeve ending a little above the elbow.

"Blake, there you are! We were starting to worry you wouldn't show," Ruby said with a light grin, causing Blake to laugh at that. After almost losing Weiss, waiting the week for her to wake up, and everything else that happened, the faunus wouldn't have missed this for the world.

"The only thing that would have stopped me from coming is if Roman Torchwick showed up here, which I highly doubt at the moment. Though I would like to find Weiss and hopefully have a dance with her. You haven't seen her by chance have you?"

"I think she's having a dance with Neptune, Sun's partner. I can find her if you want?" Ruby asked, about to use her semblance to speed off into the distance.

"No, no that's fine Ruby. And besides, didn't we promise that we wouldn't be using any Semblances during the dance you dolt?" she asked.

"I w-wish you wouldn't call h-her that," Velvet said softly, though loud enough to be heard by the girls all the same. Instead of making a scene about it, Blake just apologized. Apparently hanging around Weiss too much had made her pick up some of her habits. Yang didn't say anything about that, throwing her plate and cup away as she finished her food and drink. Waving her sister and the others good-bye for now, she went back into the crowd, just having fun dancing. Ruby and Velvet left soon after, both promising that if they saw Weiss that they would give the girl a heads up. Thanking the trio, Blake got up as well and headed back into the crowd as well, enjoying the event with her friends and fellow students, finally going to get something to eat after two hours of dancing with people she knew and didn't know. Drinking a glass of water and having a few chips, Blake was enjoying her snack, and break, before hearing a voice that brought a smile to her face.

"Wow Blake…I see now why you wanted to surprise me. You look beautiful in that dress. Mind if I sit down?" Weiss asked getting a shake of the head from Blake, not realizing that the action made her ribbon looser than she had made it earlier.

"Thanks Princess," Blake responded softly as she just rested her head on Weiss's shoulder, enjoying just being next to her girlfriend. Sighing softly, Blake closed her eyes and just relaxed, a soft smile finding its way on her face as Weiss put an arm around her shoulder and held her close. "In a bit…would you mind sharing a dance with me Princess?" she asked after opening her amber eyes.

"Not at all Black Cat. Not at all," Weiss replied before opening her eyes. A few seconds later, both females shuddered lightly as a quick breeze picked up. At that same moment, both members of "Team Checkmate" widened their eyes. Blake because of the fact that she didn't feel the weight of her bow on her head anymore, and Weiss because she saw a flash of light go off, meaning only one thing: someone had taken a picture of them together. Alone that wouldn't be a bad thing, but she had noticed that the sudden burst of air had taken Blake's bow with it. Once it was done, Blake had quickly used her semblance to catch up to the piece of cloth and quickly tied it back to its usual tightness, wincing just a little after she was done. "Weiss…"

"Don't you dare apologize Blake Belladonna! We both knew this was going to happen sooner or later. Now, we are going to enjoy the rest of our evening, have a dance and when we get back to the room we'll tell our partners. Between the four of us I'm sure we can up with a plan…I hope," Weiss ordered, sounding a little doubtful at the end of her speech. All she could hope for was that whoever took that picture wasn't a racist against faunus like her father was...

 _I will stay with you all our days._

 _The Next Morning_

Weiss slowly opened her eyes as she stared at the underside of Ruby's bed, knowing that today would not be a fun day. Sighing lightly, she forced herself up out of the bed and start her morning routine. Once she was out of the shower, dried and clothed, she exited the bathroom before having something shoved into her hands.

"Here, I thought you'd like this. I read some of it and to be honest, if I find this reporter they won't find the body," Yang said before sitting down letting out a soft sigh as she gave the heiress the room she needed to read. "Though you may want to also put up a privacy glyph…and try not to get too loud," she added before moving away from the explosion that she knew was going to happen as Weiss started reading the Vale News.

 **Cat out of the Bag! Heiress Dating a Faunus?!**

" _Yes, my dear readers, you've read that correctly! Weiss Schnee, daughter to the world-renowned Thomas Schnee, owner and founder of the Schnee Dust Company, was seen kissing a cat Faunus just last night! This Faunus had been using a small ribbon in a feeble effort as an attempt to hide her cat-like features, and with it, she has successfully ensnared young Weiss Schnee in her web of lies and deception! Perhaps this is how the White Fang now plan on countering the prejudice against the Faunus Race? This reporter certainly hopes not!_

 _There's only one way to look at this situation: this cat Faunus has tricked the heiress and has been planning to use this young woman for an unknown period of time in an effort on the White Fang's part to get back at Mr. Thomas Schnee, a known anti-Faunus extremist. The White Fang has been known to target the Schnee Dust Company's shipments and company personnel, even attacking some warehouses in recent times._

 _It would seem that the young Schnee was unaware of this Faunus' true nature. Does the White Fang truly have their grips in the heir apparent? Or is there still yet time to fix this problem and rescue the young daughter of Thomas Schnee? If the White Fang digs their claws in any deeper, they could very well be looking to take down the Schnee Dust Company with one last, desperate move. By taking Weiss Schnee captive, should Sir Thomas Schnee deem it so, for his daughter there is a chance he may cave into any demands that they may make!_

 _One thing's for sure folks; this Faunus is a monster that seeks to destroy a good man by using his poor, helpless daughter against him. Such criminal behavior is frowned upon and proves why the scum that is known as Faunus-kind deserves eradication! If they're willing to go so far as to do something like this, who's to say they won't target the elderly and children next?! There's any number of things this plague could attempt to do in the future, so we must unite together and push these monsters from our lands once and for all!_

 _For the purity of our world and to protect the innocent from these creatures, unite together under one banner and do the right thing ladies and gentlemen! Gather your weapons, give your support to Mr. Thomas Schnee, and kick the Faunus out of our cities and our homes! And should you see Miss Weiss Schnee and find the opportunity to rescue her from those lowly Faunus terrorists known as the White Fang, do so and protect her from harm! Let this cat Faunus know that she has picked the wrong target and cannot, and most importantly,_ will _not get away with her trickery, with her crimes, and most certainly not with targeting that young woman's life to get to her father!_

 _I think I speak for all of us when I say our hearts go out to the young woman's father, Mr. Thomas Schnee. We feel for you, we understand your pain, and we wish you the best of luck in your endeavors to see your daughter safely from harm. Godspeed Mr. Thomas Schnee, and good luck to the rest of you in exterminating the Faunus threat!_

 _~ Amanda Brown_

"That bitch! What type of nerve does she think she have?! Yang! If you find this lady and can get away with it, leave me a piece of her. This…This is just all slander! And while she doesn't name Blake…it's pretty damn obvious just who it is she's talking about," Weiss growled out before taking a small breath and letting it out. "Now then, what can we do about this? Blake, you cannot go out there. Riots and mobs will be after your blood. And of course people are going to be talking to me as well," she said and before Blake could open her mouth, Weiss quickly glared at the faunus. "This is NOT your fault and you do NOT have to apologize! We both knew that this was going to happen, and I also won't be surprised if my father calls me at some point. But I know that I love you Blake Belladonna and nothing now will change that fact!" she shouted out as both Ruby and Yang clapped at her speech, causing the Ice Queen to blush lightly at that.

"Who knew that you could thaw out the Ice Queen, Kitty?" Yang asked.

"Yang. Dull scissors. Your hair. At night," Weiss snapped off, not in the mood for Yang's puns.

"Sorry. Just trying to help cheer people up. But other than having Blake hole up here for a while, what can we do?" Yang asked, honestly, and seriously, worried about her partner. "We know Cardin will try something to 'rescue her' from Blake, and she really can't do anything to retaliate. If she did…Cardin would only use that as an excuse that the White Fang are attacking or some other bullshit."

Ruby was about to say something before her scroll started going off. Grabbing it from the desk, she was surprised to see that it was Headmaster Ozpin calling the leader of Team RWBY and quickly hit the Call Button. "Headmaster?" she asked, getting the three members to stop what they were doing and stare at their younger leader in curiosity.

"Ah, Ms. Rose. I assume that you have read the news for today?" he asked, getting a light growl from the girl in question. "From that response, I assume you have."

"You know all of this isn't true, right?"

"I do. Put me on speaker please. Your whole team, especially Ms. Belladonna, need to hear this," he said as Ruby did so, quickly putting him on speaker. Once she had done so, she placed the scroll on the desk and commented that he was now on speaker. "Now then, I want you all to know that I plan on protecting Ms. Belladonna's safety and her wellbeing. I have informed staff members to be on the alert. Not only are they to keep their eyes and ears open for anyone that may conspire to harm young Blake, but if they overhear something then they are to drastically punish the individual in question, even if they are just joking about it.

"That won't be enough sir, you know this right?" Weiss asked, getting a confirmation from the Headmaster.

"I do. That's why I'm allowing both Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long the authority to keep their respective weapons on their personnel at all times, and if need be, to use force to protect your partners. However, I would like to request that you keep lethal forces to a minimum as well as to not abuse this privilege I'm giving you two."

"Yes sir!" both Ruby and Yang replied.

"Good. Now then, Blake. I request that you stay in the dorm room as much as possible. If you need to head out for any reason, please contact a staff member so that they can escort you to where you need to go. I'm also allowing you free usage of your Shadow Semblance, but like your leader and partner, please do not abuse this," Ozpin stated before letting out a light sigh.

"Headmaster…what about people trying to assassinate me? I know that you know I was once part of the White Fang (she had told Ruby and Yang about this soon after Weiss was announced stable) and that students do have guns for weapons," Blake asked, getting a small amount of silence on the other line for a few seconds.

"If someone does try that, I will hire a bodyguard for your protection. However, she will have to stay in the shadows…"

"Like a ninja? Ow!" Ruby interrupted before turning to Weiss with a look of betrayal on her face. "Weiss…why?"

"Now's not the time Dolt. Sorry Headmaster, please continue," Weiss said though she thought she heard a light chuckle coming from Headmaster Ozpin.

"Actually, Ms. Rose has a good description like that. However, I cannot officially give Blake a bodyguard, since it would show that I am favoring one Faunus while several others have been struggling with bullies and similar acts for years," he continued before hearing Weiss groan at that.

"Ugh…politics. Is it really that bad that we have to pretend that you didn't hire a bodyguard if it comes to that?" Weiss asked, getting a confirmation from the headmaster, causing Weiss to sigh at hearing such news.

"Now then, Ms. Schnee, I know this is going to be hard on you, but any words about yourself or your girlfriend you must not act on. If you do, I'm afraid the people will think you're too involved with the faunus and think that you cannot be saved. Let Ruby and Yang do the fighting for you, since they haven't been named in the article.

"We still have to be careful though, right?" Yang asked.

"Correct. People will suspect if you lash out at just anyone for any minor thing said about Ms. Belladonna or Ms. Schnee. That's why I have the teachers and other staff keeping a close eye on this. With that being said, I would like the three of you to head to class. The teachers have already been informed about Blake's absence and won't question it. Remember ladies, discretion is the key to all of this. Also Blake, I will keep this line open for you just in case. Do not hesitate to use it for an escort or help. Farewell," he stated before ending the call.

And that is how the next month passed. Blake received notes at the end of each day as well as the work that was assigned to her, doing the educational work during the day and any physical work during the night. It was annoying, especially to Blake. And while she understood the reasoning behind all of this, she hated the fact that for all intents and purposes, she was under house arrest. And it showed. Not only to the Faunus member of Team RWBY, but the other members of the team as well.

"Ugh…I thought this would have died down by now," Weiss moaned out as she laid on the covers of her bed, her eyes closed as she felt a small headache coming on. This was the third time that Cardin and one of his new sidekicks in the school had tried to save Weiss from having to 'live with such a filthy animal' after that comment though, Yang quickly jumped the table and tackled him. What put him in the Infirmary section; however, was the fact he said that Yang had it worse off, since she was forced to be the 'caretaker' of such a beast. Usually whenever she heard that, she made sure to send Aura to her eyes and activate her Semblance just enough for them to turn red before asking the person to repeat that, but Cardin had it coming to him. However, it wasn't only just Cardin that tried to 'save' Weiss, but he was the most active. And this was just the stuff that the girls saw and heard. Who knew what else would have happened if the teachers weren't helping as well?

"Glad to see you're having fun," Blake replied sarcastically.

"Aw, don't be like that Kitty. Sure you were forced to go without your bow before you wanted to, but we got your back. And no one with more than a few brain cells to rub together blame you for what happened either," Yang replied as she looked towards her partner. "Seriously though…how are you holding up?"

"Terribly. I hate having to do this. And now…I'm branded a terrorist just because I'm a Faunus," the cat girl said miserably. After hearing that, Weiss got up out of the bed and headed towards her girlfriend's side before giving Blake a one-armed hug.

"Blake, we'll deal with this. I don't know how, but we will," Weiss started to say before seeing her scroll starting to vibrate. Picking it up, she paled lightly at who was calling: Her father. She had silently been wondering when he would call since she knew that he would read that article at some point. Not wanting anyone to overhear the conversation, she headed to the bathroom, closed the door and once more made use of the glyph that would cause no one to hear or see whatever happened. Once that was done, she sighed lightly before answering her scroll.

"Hello father"

"Don't you 'hello father' me Weiss Schnee. I thought that I could finally celebrate extending the Schnee Dust Company to the Vacuo Republic, only to be putting it on hold after reading this scandal that my daughter is involved in! Not only do I have to deal with an impromptu sandstorm that leaves me stranded in that villainous country for two weeks, but I come back to see this in the newspaper! I would be mad that you were gay if you told me, but I wouldn't have been this mad Weiss! And then it gets better by finding out that you're not only dating another female, but a female _Faunus!_ Not only that, but she was a former member of our enemy, the group that killed your mother! I thought I raised you better than that as my daughter. I deserve answers Weiss, and I demand them _now,_ " Thomas said, the furiousness in his voice causing Weiss to wince lightly in response, as well as take the scroll away from her ear for a few seconds.

After hearing that, Weiss had finally had enough. Not only did she have to deal with the idiotic reporter writing that article, she had to now deal with everyone knowing her business. And trying to 'save her' from the evil clutches of Blake. After a few days she started to get annoyed. After a week, it was starting to grate on her nerves. Now that it was a month in, and it still hadn't died down...Weiss would have hurt someone herself if Ozpin hadn't put those rules into place. But she had to hear it from her father as well? That was the last straw that broke the proverbial back. Placing the scroll back to her ear, she took a small breath before doing something that she thought she would never do…

"Or else what father? Are you going to dictate who I am to date and marry? Dictate the rest of my life? Just because you want to protect your precious image? Who I decide to date is none of your business! And you don't deserve to tell me anything anyways! When mom died, you threw yourself into your work, ignoring both me and Winter! And then you separated us so that I could be groomed into your heir...did it ever occur to you that I might not have wanted that?!" Weiss shouted.

"Being the oldest, you should have realized that I was going to groom you in order to be my heir Weiss. After being such an obedient daughter, I thought it would be a good idea to let you live out your fantasy for four years as a reward for such good behavior. I would let you see what it was like 'living your dream' for a while, but that comes to an end."

"What do you mean father?" Weiss asked, though she already had an idea. If that was the case then she was going to fight for all that she was worth. There was no way she was going to be leaving Beacon Academy.

"I am going to be bringing you back home daughter and renew your lessons in taking over the family business. It's time for you to come back to reality and see how the world really works. Your dream of becoming a huntress was always that Weiss, a dream. And like all good dreams that come to an end, it's time for you to wake up. "

"No, I refuse! You already paid for the four years anyways, you cannot just pull the plug because of some idiot reporter trying to besmirch your name. You can't do that..."

"I can and I will. I shall be there within the week. You have that long to prepare," he said before ending the conversation by hanging up on her. She didn't realize the tears running down her face until she saw a small circle fall onto her skirt. Reaching up, she could feel the tears pouring down silently. _'Why am I crying…is it because father is forcing me into doing something I don't want to do, or is it because I'll be losing Blake…'_ she thought as she rubbed at the tears. Once they were gone, she headed to the vanity and turned the water on. Washing her face to the best of her ability, she checked herself in the mirror before taking down her glyph and headed back outside…before being ambushed by a hug from her girlfriend.

"Ack, Blake! What the hell?" Weiss exclaimed in surprise. Usually she didn't curse but there was a first time for everything, especially when you were surprised like that. Hearing laughter coming from the blonde, she glared in her direction before turning back to Blake. "Okay seriously. What's wrong?"

"Apparently cats have great hearing…" Blake said while looking down and away

"So…you heard all that?" Weiss asked, getting a nod from Blake. Seeing the confused look on both Yang and Ruby's faces, she sighed lightly. "You two aren't going to like this," she started to say before relaying the information that her father told her. After that, both sisters were visibly angry.

"That…that's just wrong! That bastard can't just do that to you!" Yang shouted in anger after hearing all of that before deflating as she saw Blake wince lightly. "Sorry Kitty," she added which Blake only nodded at.

"So…what are we going to do? Team RWBY isn't Team RWBY without you Weiss…" Ruby said softly as she sat down next to her partner.

"I don't know Ruby…I honestly don't know," Weiss said. "But I need to let Headmaster Ozpin know…he needs to know that my father is going to be coming."

"Maybe you can also ask him if there's anything you can do to stop him from taking you?" Ruby asked. She knew that by herself, she couldn't do anything, even as the Team's leader. Yang would just make matters worse, and there was no way that he would listen to Blake's pleas.

"I was going to ask him that. He's the headmaster of this school…he should know the rules of this school. If he can think of something, he'll tell me, I'm sure," she replied angrily. Not at Ruby for asking the question, but at the whole situation. Calming herself down, she turned towards Blake. "Blake…what was that number that Ozpin gave you? I want to call and set a time to set up an official meeting as well as ask him to let the teachers know I won't be in classes for a while. I'm in no shape…" she said while trying not to break down. At that, Blake reached over and placed a hand on the middle of Weiss's back and slowly started rubbing circles on her back.

"Ruby, Yang, can you give us the room please?" Blake asked/pleaded, getting a nod from Yang as she took her younger sister out of the room, closing and hearing the automatic lock activating before ultimately deciding on getting some food as Blake helped Weiss calm down.

 _One Week Later_

"Are you sure that this will work?" Weiss asked, getting a nod from the cat faunus as Team RWBY, Headmaster Ozpin and Glynda Goodwitch waited for Weiss's father. At the meeting with both Ozpin and Glynda, Weiss had explained what her father was going to do and that she didn't want to leave. Not only did she make friends, able to admit that she was a lesbian and fall in love with Blake Belladonna, but she was also starting to open up and enjoying the woman that she was becoming.

"It will work Weiss. Though Rule 17.53 is rarely used nowadays, it still does exist, and there are no additional rules negating it. And I know Ms. Belladonna here has been training hard during her nightly sessions with me," Glynda replied with her no nonsense fashion.

"Sorry, it's just…"

"You're a little nervous Queenie?" Yang asked, getting a light sigh from Weiss. Getting a small nod in response, the blonde grinned at that. "Don't be. I know Kitty has this in the bag, hands down."

"Yang, my father was once known throughout the land as a Fencing Champion. Myrtenaster was actually a prize that he won in one of his many victories before founding and becoming the CEO of the Schnee Dust Company. I have a right to be worried," Weiss replied with a slight amount of anger in it.

"Sorry…" Yang commented before Weiss shook her head lightly.

"No…you're only trying to help in your own way, as annoying as it is. Thanks," she said softly before the door opened and a white-haired male came through the door. Wearing a white button-up shirt and pants, the cufflinks on the wrist a cold and icy blue, just like the man that he worked for.

"Everything seems okay Sir," the young man said as he stepped to the side as a girl with brown hair in a similar attire to the man, only with a white dress instead of pants came in. After that, Thomas, himself, made an appearance. Seeing that Weiss was still standing near her team with no suitcases packed, he sighed lightly.

"I had a feeling that this would happen. Areku, Amaya, have Weiss lead you two to her dorm room so that you can help her pack."

"Yes sir," the two said before turning towards Weiss and frowning lightly. "Ms. Weiss…if you could?" Areku asked as Weiss held back the first words that she wanted to say before silently nodding and leading the two away.

"I didn't know Weiss had a brother…" Yang whispered to her sister, who responded with a light shake of the head signifying that she didn't know either. Apparently Yang had been overheard as the guy responded, saying that while it happened often, he wasn't Weiss's brother. Once they were out of hearing, Thomas turned to the adults in the room. However, before he could say anything more, Blake chose that time to speak up.

"Thomas Schnee, under Rule 17.53 of the Hunters Rulebook, I challenge you to a duel," she said in a formal and clipped tone. Something that she had help perfecting with the help of Weiss and Coco. Seeing the man glare back at her, Blake stood her ground.

"I do not have to answer to any of your demands for a duel from your kind, filth. Once Weiss and the others return, we are leaving. Hopefully I can repair the damages that you lot created," Thomas said before being interrupted by Ozpin.

"You should realize the rules here Thomas," Ozpin stated, doing his best to hide the grin from showing. "Blake has every right to challenge you for Ms. Schnee's hand. Unless that is, you want to forfeit and only listen to Ms. Belladonna's demands," he added. Since every school for Hunters/Huntresses-in-training had a unified rulebook, Blake was well within her rights as a huntress-in-training to challenge anyone on campus. It didn't matter if it was a visitor, a staff member or another student, which was explained to Thomas.

"That freak might have the right to challenge me, but I still do not have to accept personally. For all I know, I could use the same rule to have one of my bodyguards to fight in my place," he replied.

"That's not how the rule works Mr. Schnee. Only the person who issues the challenge can choose their opponent. The opponent then can only accept or decline. Though if there are conditions tacked on before the fight starts, and then the opponent refuses…"

"Let me guess, the freak has conditions for this fight against me, and if I hear them then I am obligated to fight? If I don't hear them then that means they aren't in effect," at this he smirked lightly. "Or I could just feign ignorance and leave with my daughter."

"You could, if I was the only one here. But we all thought of that which is why Headmaster Ozpin, my team and Professor Goodwitch are here as well" Blake responded, resisting the urge to smirk when she saw that Thomas was trying to think of anything else to combat this and saw none.

"Fine you freak...what are your terms?" Thomas growled out as he noticed Areku, Amaya and Weiss return with a set of suitcases. Blake grinned, glad that this was going her way. Now she just had to hope that her training would be enough.

"My conditions are as followed: You will not bother either of us again and Weiss keeps her status as heiress of your company. And while I would also like your blessing if/when we get married, but I'm not going to hold my breath on that one" Blake said as she finished. She had been instructed to formally give out her conditions by Glynda when Weiss had met with the Headmaster during the week.

"Fine. I shall accept those conditions, but don't expect for me to ever 'bless' a union between filth like you and my daughter. Now then...I believe I can list my own terms, correct?" He asked, getting a nod from Blake. "Fine then. When I win...I get to take Weiss home with me. She will never see you again and you won't contact her in any shape or form. And..." at this he turned to his daughter. "You have to publicly refute your stance on Faunus and accept my way of thinking"

Normally this would appall Weiss and she would have spoken up, but she also had faith in Blake. She knew that her girlfriend could take care of herself and had a high feeling that she could win. "Fine. If you win…then I'll make a public announcement saying that the article written by that woman was true; that I was ensnared by her lies, and that my 'White Knight' of a father saved me from them. But when Blake wins I want you out of my life. We can go through Winter if you want something from me, or if I need something from you." Weiss replied as Glynda motioned for them to follow her.

 _1 Hour Later_

"WHO ARE YOU?!" Thomas Schnee yelled in anger as he cut through yet another clone of the cat faunus, his anger starting to get the best of him. He hated the fact that not only was this young girl getting to him, but also that he was only able to catch the girl in a few lucky hits, causing her aura level to match his: in the yellow.

Blake scowled as he asked that question, but didn't let it get to her…too much. Both she and Weiss had already told him about their relationship, and Blake had even gone so far as to show the man who hated faunus her true self, knowing that it would be a bad idea to lie to the CEO.

"I am Blake Taurus, born into the White Fang and taught to fight next to my father," she started, speeding towards his left side and attempting to hit him. When that didn't work, she quickly created a clone using her semblance and let it take the blow for her as she disappeared into the cloud of earth dust. "I am Blake Belladonna, taking my mother's maiden name to right the wrongs of my past," at this, she let out a shot from her transformed sword, grazing Thomas' right hand, the one holding his rapier.

"Who cares about your past? I will not allow filth like you tainting our name," he growled out as he shot ice dust from his rapier, hoping to use the ice to either hit the cat bitch or cause the earth dust within to become immobile. Unfortunately for Blake, the ice dust did exactly that, causing the dust smokescreen to fall hopelessly to the floor. "And now that you're in my element filth, I will take you out just like what you are," he smirked before activating his semblance.

"No!" Weiss shouted out as she saw her father start using his semblance of Ice to try and impale Blake with either icicles falling from the ceiling or jutting out from the floor. She was also dodging several lances of icy death coming from the wall as well. After a few minutes of this, Thomas let up the attack so as to preserve some of his Aura. However, he knew that the girl would be barely breathing by now. Glancing up at the indicator, he was surprised to see that he was in the lower yellow area while she was still above him in terms of Aura.

"HOW?!" he shouted, knowing that almost no one could still fight him after using his semblance combined with Dust to create a prison of ice.

"I-it's because of who I a-am," Blake said, gathering a small amount of air into her lungs as she said that. "and who I was. Blake Taurus, Princess of the White Fang; Blake Belladonna, future Huntress-in-Training; Blake Rose, a lost cat who was taken in by caring sisters," at this she paused, making sure to split her focus between Weiss and her father as what she said next. "and hopefully sometime in the future, I will become Blake Schnee, wife of the one person who holds my heart," she stated before narrowing her eyes at the man in front of her. "And there's not a damn thing you can do about it!" she shouted as she shot at the man, watching his Aura Level head into the red, causing the duel to end in Blake's favor, causing the faunus to smirk lightly at that.

"As by the conditions that you set for the duel with Ms. Belladonna Thomas Schnee: you will not bother Weiss or Blake, try to break them up, or conspire against them in any shape or manner that would result in their relationship status to change," Glynda stated, taking a small amount of glee as seeing the man ball up his fists in anger before finally nodding, knowing that he had no other choice. "You also will agree to keep her status as heiress to your company and I believe that was all of Blake's demands when you agreed to the duel," she stated. With that, the man took his leave, grumbling in anger but knew that he could do nothing about it. Blake Belladonna had fought, and won, fair and square.

Blake slowly made her way back to her team with a smile on her face. Once there; however, she was hugged by the whole team with Weiss leading the hug. "You did great Black Cat!" Weiss said with a grin before giving her a light kiss on the cheek. She would have done more but felt with Ozpin and Glynda there that it wouldn't be appropriate.

After that, a few months had passed. Luckily, things started calming down for everyone. Cardin was still a pain in the rear end to Faunus kind, but whenever he saw Blake, or Acqua, he quickly shut up. Apparently he still remembered the beating that he and his team got at the hands of one cat faunus in defense of the other. Waking up one morning, she was surprised to see Blake coming inside the dorm with her bow off and also holding the newspaper for the day.

"Blake?" She asked, propping herself up on her elbow, curiosity in her blue eyes, raising an eyebrow and moving over when said female sat down on her bed. "Am I going to have to rub your ears in order to get a response out of you?" she asked.

"You remember that article that started the chaos between the two of us and your father?" Blake asked, getting a nod from Weiss. "Well, apparently your father pulled some strings and got that reporter fired. The newspaper even made an official apology!" She exclaimed with a light grin.

"Really?" Weiss asked, quite surprised.

"As of Today, Amanda Brown is no longer in our employment. We would also like to apologize to our Faunus readers…" Blake read from the apology. "It continues on explaining what happened and what not, but that's the most important part."

 _The End_

* * *

Dragon and Sword Master: It is finally over. And I'm quite happy at this. With that being said, this is the final chapter. Nothing is going to happen next. And I mean it this time. Hopefully everyone is okay with this conclusion and if not, well…sorry.


End file.
